Vincennes
Vincennes ( ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. History The Marquis de Sade was imprisoned in Vincennes fortress in 1777, where he remained (mainly: he escaped for a little over a month in 1778), until February 1784, when Vincennes fortress was closed and de Sade was transferred to the Bastille. In 1929, the commune of Vincennes lost about half of its territory when the city of Paris annexed the Bois de Vincennes, a large part of which belonged to the commune of Vincennes. In 1849, a test was conducted on Claude-Étienne Minié's invention the Minié ball which would prove successful and years later be adopted by the French army. Vincennes was also the site of some famous European colonial expositions in the 20th century in which fairs were held to showcase artifacts from former European colonies. Sights The city is famous for its castle, the Château de Vincennes, and its park, the Bois de Vincennes hosting the only zoo in Paris, Zoo de Vincennes (though these two are now within the limits of the City of Paris). It also features a large military fort, now housing various army services. This fort and an adjoining plain known as the "Polygon" has historically been an important proving ground for French armaments. Transport Vincennes is served by two stations on Paris Métro Line 1: Bérault and Château de Vincennes. Vincennes is also served by Vincennes station on Paris RER line A. Porcelain In the old royal château, a porcelain manufactory was established in 1740, specializing in imitations of Meissen porcelain and naturalistic flowers, which were incorporated into bouquets under the direction of Parisian marchands-merciers. The Vincennes porcelain factory continued until 1756, when the production was transferred to new buildings at Sèvres, initiating the career of world-famous Sèvres porcelain. Sister cities Vincennes is twinned with: * Castrop-Rauxel, Germany * Lambeth, United Kingdom * Montigny-le-Tilleul, Belgium * Tomar, Portugal * Vincennes, Indiana, United States Vincennes University In 1970 the "University of Paris VIII" was established in Vincennes as France's first major experiment in open admissions education, as a result of the academic reforms which followed the student risings of 1968. Intended to lessen the French university system's traditional emphasis on formal and elitist schooling, the school (generally known simply as Vincennes) admitted students without the usual entrance requirement of the baccalaureat degree and introduced courses such as the History of Cinema, Sexology, and Third World Economics. Enrollments peaked at 32,000 with more than 40% of students holding full time jobs off the campus. However problems associated with political unrest and alleged widespread drug usage amongst the student body led to the resignation of the Vincennes University President and the relocation of the campus to Saint-Denis by the French Government in 1980.Time Magazine March 31, 1980 Notable residents *Alphonse Halimi, boxer Images gallery File:Pano vincennes.JPG|Panoramic view of the church and City Hall of Vincennes File:Donjon du Château de Vincennes.jpg|Main tower of the Vincennes medieval castle File:Bois de Vincennes - Paris.jpg|The Vincennes Park in autumn File:Parc zoologique de Vincennes 20060816 18.jpg|The famous rock of Vincennes zoo See also * Vélodrome de Vincennes *Communes of the Val-de-Marne department References *INSEE *Mayors of Essonne Association ;Notes External links *Vincennes town council website Category:Communes of Val-de-Marne